Warrants issued against 2 former army personnel in Tonu murder case, Red Notice sought from Interpol

A court has issued arrest warrants against two former army personnel in the murder case of Cumilla Victoria Government College student Sohagi Jahan Tonu and ordered that Red Notices be issued through Interpol for their arrest.

Senior Judicial Magistrate (1st Court) Muminul Haque passed the order on Monday afternoon, June 8. Cumilla Court Police Inspector Mohammad Mamunur Rashid confirmed the information.

The former army personnel against whom arrest warrants have been issued are Sergeant Jahiduzzaman, also known as Jahid, who was serving at Cumilla Cantonment at the time of the murder, and soldier Shahin Alam.

At the time of Tonu's murder, Jahid was serving at the 12 Engineer Battalion in Cumilla Cantonment. His home is in the Garghata area of Morelganj upazila in Bagerhat. From the very beginning, the family alleged that Sergeant Jahid led the brutal assault and murder of Tonu. He is currently 48 years old.

Soldier Shahin Alam's home is in the Gobindpur village of Piryatrapur union under Burichang upazila, Cumilla. At the time of Tonu's murder, he was serving at the 2 Signal Battalion in Cumilla Cantonment. A source said Shahin is currently outside the country. He is now 37 years old.

According to court sources, the investigating officer, PBI Inspector Tarikul Islam, recently filed a petition seeking arrest warrants against the two suspects and directives for Red Notices through Interpol. The petition also requested that any information related to the investigation from the army authorities be provided to the investigating officer.

PBI Inspector Tarikul Islam said he could not confirm the court's order as he was not present in Cumilla on the scheduled date.

Meanwhile, Hafizur Rahman, arrested in connection with the Tonu murder case, was produced before the court around 11:00 am. No bail petition was filed on his behalf, and the court ordered him sent to jail. Hafizur Rahman is a former senior warrant officer of the army. He retired in 2023 and was arrested from his residence in Keraniganj, Dhaka, on April 21. He was serving at Cumilla Cantonment at the time of the murder.

Tonu went to give a private tuition at a house inside Cumilla Cantonment on the evening of March 20, 2016, and never returned. After a search, her body was found in bushes near the cantonment power house.